on this saturday night, deadly crash. after a police helicopter slams into a crowded pub, we are on the scene as investigators look for answers. buying frenzy. the numbers just in for the biggest shopping day of the year. plus the big move to shopping on the go with all those mobile devices. ready or not. with a deadline looming, we are with some trying to log on to the supposedly improved health care website. house calls. how one big health system tries to ease the burden of care with with a new kind of home medicine. and the comeback. once threatened, now thriving again with a little help from their friends.

good evening. police helicopters buzzing overhead are ubiquitous from the skies over many big cities here and abroad that they are barely noticed. no one expected the awful tragedy that happened last night in the center of scotland's biggest city when a police chopper came crashing down on the roof of a crowded pub. at least eight people are dead, more than a dozen hurt. tonight just over 24 hours later, searchers are working their way through the wreckage, trying to account for all of those inside. a process officials say could take days. it happened at a riverfront pub in glasgow. that's where annabell roberts is tonight with the latest on the unfolding disaster. >> reporter: the police helicopter lies broken, embedded on the roof of the pub. when it hit, more than a hundred

people were inside this popular music venue in the center of glasgow, listening to a band, enjoying a night out. eyewitnesses describe the engine sputtering before the chopper fell. >> plummeted like a stone and dropped down. it was tumbling at the same time. >> reporter: part of the roof collapsed ending up huge clouds of choking dust. >> there was a whooshing sound. the came straight up and the whole roof just caved in. >> it was like a mushroom cloud. it just enveloped everybody with dust. it was horrific. >> reporter: police confirmed the pilot and two police officers traveling in the chopper were killed. five more bodies have been found inside the building. >> this is a complex and ongoing rescue operation. it will not be a quick operation. this is a very complicated and, indeed, dangerous scene. >> reporter: the search continues. officials say the site is too dangerous to know for sure if more people are trapped.

when celebrations are normally held to honor scotland's patron saint but today they mourn. a special mass has been held. in a statement the queen said her thoughts and prayers are with the victims. 14 people remain in hospitals across this city tonight being treated for very serious injuries. meanwhile both the police and the company that built the helicopter have launched investigations into this fatal accident. lester? >> annabell roberts in glasgow tonight. thanks. an elderly american being held by north korea appeared in a video released today as the united states appealed for his release. we get the story now from nbc's joe fryer. >> reporter: the video released by north korea state media shows 85-year-old merrill newman now detained more than a month reading an apology. he asks for forgiveness for allegedly killing north korean soldiers and civilians during the korean war. the video shows newman stamping

the statement with red thumbprints, but it couldn't be confirmed if newman wrote the apology. diplomatic experts say the video could be a sign. >> this may be a prelude to figuring out what it can extract from the united states for this release and then the release. >> reporter: newman, a korean war veteran dreamed of visiting north korea. last month he fulfilled the dream, touring with a friend. relatives say he was on a plane getting ready to leave when a north korean military officer took him into custody. last week newman's wife spoke with nbc news. >> we have a lot of strong support. but when you don't know where your husband of 56 years is, you don't know his health, you don't know when he will be home with us, it's not an easy situation. >> reporter: today, a state department official said the swedish embassy in north korea which handles issues dealing with u.s. citizens was granted

access to newman. meanwhile another u.s. citizen, kenneth bay, has been detained in north korea for more than a year. today in a statement the white house said it was deep thely concerned about the welfare of both men and urged their releases. joe fryer, nbc news, los angeles. for many people this this country, today the weekend meant another chance to hunt for holiday bargains as the first numbers were released from black friday which retailers consider the most important day of the year. nbc's kristen dahlgren is watching from here in new york for us. good evening. >> reporter: good evening, lester. big changes to tell you about. we just got the numbers in. what we are seeing is really the end of black friday as a behemoth shopping day. not because retailers are struggling but it is now a two-day event starting on thanksgiving. we are seeing a change in who's coming to the stores. people shopping online and on cell phones in record numbers

this year. even with door busters dwindling the hunt for the deal was still on. >> the best time to be shopping now. >> i got hooer as early as i could. >> $200 boots for $39. cosmetic kits less than 50% off. >> reporter: shoppers spent $9.7 billion on black friday, down 13.2% from last year. add in thanksgiving day shopping and sales rose overall, 2.3% from the same two days last year. >> all in all it was a good, safe two days and a good number on the sales standpoint. >> reporter: according to the national retail federation, holiday sales are expected to be $602 billion this year. hitting the stores isn't for everyone. the search for the best deal can bring out the worst in people. >> i would liken it to "the hunger games." it seemed like we were being attacked over a sweater. >> reporter: natalie pettyjohn shopped online. >> you can do it from your bed, your kitchen, on an airplane,

wherever. i think the convenience of that, people appreciate. in today's world we are all busy. >> reporter: analysts predict online sales could top more than $48 billion this holiday, up 14% from last year. >> i believe in going online, finding the best deal out there. >> reporter: walmart saw record traffic on its site. 400 million page views thanksgiving alone. it's not just people shopping from the comfort of home. nearly 7 in 10 smartphone owners are expected to use their mobile device to make purchases. >> this black friday we saw a huge spike in people using their mobile devices and tablets. sales were up almost 50% this season. >> reporter: as more and more shoppers take their hunt for bargains high tech. >> i will go innen and sometimes look for what i want. then i will go online and see if i can 2350i7find a better deal. >> reporter: retailers will take the sales however they can get them -- online or in store.

shoppers will be watching to see how the stores did and if there are going to be more markdowns approaching the holidays. >> kristen dahlgren in manhattan. thanks. millions of americans have another challenge on their minds this weekend -- signing up for health care under the new insurance program, or at least trying to. the obama administration's self-imposed deadline to fix the health care website is midnight tonight. kristen welker is following the story. i guess the question is how are they doing. >> reporter: they say they are doing okay. tech experts have only a few hours left to meet the white house's own deadline for getting the affordable care act website running smoothly. a critical point in restoring confidence in a damaged presidency. in virginia today, signs of progress for the government's health insurance website. >> my experience was wonderful. i love it. there were no problems. we went through everything real smooth. >> it was really fast this morning. i was really surprised. >> reporter: deirdre said she

had trouble signing up in october. today she was one of six people nbc news interviewed reporting success, signing up with the help of a nonprofit called neighbor's keeper. >> i was able to get through and select a plan. all i need to do now is send in a payment to activate the plan. >> reporter: the obama administration claimed to be on track to serve 50,000 users at once but that deadline is also aimed at repairing a presidency. >> we fumbled the roll out of the health care law. >> reporter: president obama's approval ratings have plummeted since october drawing criticism from dims and republicans alike. meeting its own goals may not satisfy administration critics. web experts say there is no guarantee the fixes will work. >> it's not easy to tell with 100% certainty if the site is going to perform. >> reporter: john engates is one of six analysts the white house invited to inspect the facility where technicians are working around the clock to fix the

website. >> the website is doing better. it's certainly in a position where it's taking traffic, doing what it's supposed to do. >> reporter: engate says it may not be enough. >> if too many users come to the site at a given time the whole thing could stop. >> reporter: anticipating that, the administration the's top health official urged users to log on during off-peak hours. >> the president's legacy in many ways doesn't rest on politics or philosophy. it rests on technical competence, the ability to take his policy and turn it into reality that ordinary americans can take advantage of. >> reporter: one administration official says the site is close to being able to host 50,000 users at once but won't give a specific number. political analysts say the administration set the barlow and its goals vague to make it that much easier to claim success. lester? >> kristen welker, thank you very much. for more on the continuing challenges facing the health

care roll out we are joined by david gregory, moderator of "meet the press." they are keeping the barlow. how do they manage expectations now as we reach the deadline? >> well, lester, let's focus on that. the need to manage expectations. because of how poorly the rollout has gone out. i know from my own reporting the administration will say they have reached the point where they can handle 50,000 users at a time on the site. about 800,000 in a day. that puts them on track to get to some of the numbers they want to get to by march but it's far from certain. they have enough progress, they think, to handle big capacity. they don't want to send people rushing to the site yet. they're going to start targeting key groups like the young healthier americans to get them to sign up and to use political tricks as well. political tools in their bag to target those groups and get them to sign up.

>> all right thanks. for more on this tomorrow, david's guests lynn collude cardinal timothy dolan, archbishop of new york. now to syria. the united nations said the civil war there is damaging a generation of children. the latist numbers explain why. more than a million children are refugees. three-quarters of them under 12. almost 400,000 of them have wound up in lebanon. for many as nbc's ayman mohyeldin tells us, childhood is becoming a thing of the past. >> reporter: it's early morning but these children aren't going to school. they are syrian refugees headed to farm fields in lebanon. cold and underdressed, a fire is all that keeps them warm until their work day begins. hours on their feet, painstakingly lifting and dumping bucketloads of vegetables. they are now the breadwinners

for their family of nine. we had no choice, maria says. we don't have proper blankets or canned food. once schoolkids, they are now child laborers. they don't have places for us to go to school here. eight organizations are trying to help, but life in lebanon is hard for the young refugees. some looked at first like kids at summer camp -- dancing, drawing, singing. but behind the smiles lies sm s something darker. this boy, sometimes playful can be visibly aggressive. a symptom of a civil war he and his family escaped only to find themselves living in this makeshift tent. a few pots and pans the only reminder of home. it is a hard existence says his father. he has a broken back and struggles to walk. so it is up to ibrahim and his

brother to make the daily trek for water. nearly 200 refugee families live in this tent city, one of at least 1400 such camps across lebanon. families make shelters with whatever scraps they can find. no running water, no sanitation, no electricity. at the tent city here health workers treat a stream of children, many suffering skin diseases and malnutrition. >> some are scared. they are not able to speak. they cry at night. all they can do is scream because they are scared what may happen. >> reporter: for now aid workers face an uphill battle trying to give the children a childhood they were forced to leave behind. ayman mohyeldin, nbc news, lebanon. when "nbc nightly news" continues on this saturday, a new twist on the house call. you will be surprised who is showing up to help. later a remarkable comeback story. how they are thriving again on the coast of florida.

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crestor got more high-risk patients' bad cholesterol to a goal of under 100. way to go, crestor! yeah! getting to goal is a big deal, especially if you have high cholesterol plus any of these risk factors. because you could be at increased risk for plaque buildup in your arteries over time. so, when diet and exercise aren't enough to lower cholesterol, adding crestor can help. go, crestor! ♪ ♪ oh, yeah [ female announcer ] crestor is not right for everyone, like people with liver disease or women who are nursing, pregnant, or may become pregnant. tell your doctor about other medicines you're taking. call your doctor right away if you have muscle pain or weakness, feel unusually tired, have loss of appetite, upper belly pain, dark urine, or yellowing of skin or eyes. these could be signs of rare but serious side effects. crestor! yes! [ female announcer ] ask your doctor about crestor. if you can't afford your medication,

astrazeneca may be able to help. if you can't afford your medication, on the table by not choosing the right medicare d plan. no one could have left this much money here. whoo-hoo-hoo! yet many seniors who compare medicare d plans realize they can save hundreds of dollars. cvs/pharmacy wants to help you save on medicare expenses. talk to your cvs pharmacist, call, or go to cvs.com/compare to get your free, personalized plan comparison today. call, go online, or visit your local store today. with millions of people focused on health care and the government's new insurance program we want to tell you about a novel approach to bringing medical costs down. it involves a variation on what used to be a common practice in this country -- the house call. our report tonight from nbc's chief medical editor dr. nancy snyderman. >> reporter: visits to the emergency room are skyrocketing. about 130 million a year.

>> i'm going to listen to you, too. >> anybody can be seen. so i think in our country now a big thing is that the emergency department is the safety net for people without insurance. >> reporter: it is a tremendous burden on hospitals struggling to keep costs down. >> 81-year-old lady here with shortness of breath. >> reporter: that's why minnesota's north memorial health care system is among the first in the country to test a new approach they think may reduce admissions and keep people healthier. they are sending paramedics on house calls to patients with chronic conditions like diabetes and asthma who may otherwise go to the e.r. >> you get to spend more time with them, find out what's going on, what's bothering them. what they need help with. how are you today? >> reporter: chris anderson is among the first group of paramedics specially trained to make house calls. he checks in on patients like victoria, helping her with her medications and blood tests, things she used to visit the emergency room for. >> you're in better shape than i

am. >> reporter: the project started in october after hospital officials referred people who use the emergency room nine or more times a year. north memorial's chief medical officer dr. kevin crosston says the number of repeat patients is often staggering. >> some patients are here 23 times in a month. >> reporter: since then paramedics made more than 1,000 home visits at a fraction of the cost for a trip to the e.r. barb andrews runs the program. >> it gives us as paramedics an opportunity to be proactive rather than reactive. >> reporter: and says it is a new way to think about the role of first responders in caring for patients. >> see you next week. >> empower them to manage their own health better in the home. keep them out of the nursing home. keep them out of the hospital. >> reporter: north memorial doesn't have data on the cost savings yet but believes the program will reduce admissions and give better care to the chronically ill. that's better for everyone in the long run. dr. nancy snyderman, nbc news, new york.

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and is billed as a nice alternative to the yule log on the screen at holiday parties. keep in mind the reindeer may be otherwise occupied come december 24. in case you are wondering the atlantic hurricane season ended today pretty much a no show. this was as bad as it got. tropical storm andrea hitting parts of the south in june. there were 13 named storms this season, but only two became hurricanes. that's the fewest since 1982. neither of the hurricanes made it to the united states. in central illinois, a happy reunion to report. almost two weeks of a deadly tornado. specialist jacob montgomery of the army national guard and dexter, his pit bull puppy. they were separated after montgomery's apartment was destroyed. the dog was found 19 days later under the rubble. he learned about it from n a facebook message from a neighbor. next a comeback story you don't want to mis.

there are seniors who have left hundreds of dollars of savings on the table by not choosing the right medicare d plan. no one could have left this much money here. whoo-hoo-hoo! yet many seniors who compare medicare d plans realize they can save hundreds of dollars. cvs/pharmacy wants to help you save on medicare expenses. talk to your cvs pharmacist, call, or go to cvs.com/compare to get your free, personalized plan comparison today. call, go online, or visit your local store today. crestor got more high-risk patients' bad cholesterol to a goal of under 100. way to go, crestor! yeah! getting to goal is a big deal, especially if you have high cholesterol plus any of these risk factors. because you could be at increased risk for plaque buildup in your arteries over time. so, when diet and exercise aren't enough to lower cholesterol, adding crestor can help. go, crestor!

♪ ♪ oh, yeah [ female announcer ] crestor is not right for everyone, like people with liver disease or women who are nursing, pregnant, or may become pregnant. tell your doctor about other medicines you're taking. call your doctor right away if you have muscle pain or weakness, feel unusually tired, have loss of appetite, upper belly pain, dark urine, or yellowing of skin or eyes. these could be signs of rare but serious side effects. crestor! yes! [ female announcer ] ask your doctor about crestor. if you can't afford your medication, astrazeneca may be able to help. if you can't afford your medication, imany cold medicines may raisee your blood pressure. that's why there's coricidin hbp it relieves cold symptoms without raising blood pressure. so look for powerful cold medicine with a heart. coricidin hbp. side-by-side, so you get the same coverage, often for less. that's one smart board -- what else does it do, reverse gravity? [ laughs ] split atoms?

[ flo chuckles ] [ whirring ] hey, how's that atom-splitting thing going? oh! a smarter way to shop around -- now that's progressive. call or click today. finally tonight one of the great success stories the world of wildlife. the return of green sea turtles to the coast of florida, decades after they were placed on the endangered species list. there was an increase in nesting this year capping a remarkable recovery. here's nbc's mark potter. >> reporter: on a remote beach on the east coast, newly hatched

green turtles struggle toward the water's edge to begin life at sea. once faced with extinction, green turtles are now on a remarkable comeback, a success story cheered by environmentalists. >> they are majestic, charismatic animals that intrigue us. the world would be a poorer place without them. >> reporter: they eat sea grass and adults can weigh more than 400 pounds n. the spring females dig nests in the sand to lay their eggs which hatch nearly two months later. because they are easily captured green turtles were long harvested for food and nearly disappeared. >> we ate a lot of them, almost all of them. >> reporter: in 1978 the u.s. added green turtles to the endangered species list. biologists counting turtle nests at the archie carr national wildlife refuge in florida are astounded by the results. there were only 62 nests in 1979. there are 35,000 this year.

it can take green turtles 30 to 40 years to mature and begin building nests like this which is why scientists say it's taken so long since they were put on the endangered species list to see such positive results now. green turtles face other threats such as fishing lines, hooks and nets. at the turtle hospital in the florida keys, many are treated for aggressive viral tumors. the cause? unknown. >> we have so many more, higher percentage coming with tumors all over them. it gets on their eyes so they can't see and they starve. >> reporter: rising ocean levels and sea walls will destroy their nesting sites. >> every day twice a day at high tide the beach will be covered with salt water. >> reporter: still, the nesting explosion now is seen as a hopeful sign that conservation measures can work to restore a valued species that nearly went away. mark potter, nbc news, melbourne beach, florida.

that's "nbc nightly news" for this saturday. i'm lester holt reporting from new york. i will see you tomorrow on "today" and then back here tomorrow evening. "today" and then back here tomorrow evening. have a good night, everyone. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com